The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to the field of control systems in aircraft and, in particular, to an advanced control law that utilizes a fly-by-wire system to implement a position hold override control for an aircraft.
Many aircraft, including helicopters, use an onboard fly-by-wire (FBW) system to control vehicle operation. Emerging FBW helicopters provide high levels of augmentation. These FBW systems greatly reduce pilot workload and enhance safety. Part of the safety enhancements includes control inputs that allow pilots to aggressively maneuver within the airframe structural limits and not exceed these limits. Within these flight control systems, it is possible for the pilot to engage a deceleration mode whereby the flight control system follows an automated linear deceleration profile in order to automatically decelerate to a specific location. However, in typical aircraft, a pilot may not be able to augment the automated linear deceleration profile once initiated. This often results in the helicopter overshooting the specific location by flying a very controlled approach to a wrong location. Once a position hold is established at a target location, repositioning the aircraft can be cumbersome. Further, automated pilot assistance features are typically constrained to a substantially low operating speed range, e.g., five knots or less.